


The Lament of Marmora

by Kolivans (arka_r)



Series: MOSSverse [1]
Category: Voltron: Legendary Defender
Genre: Alien Culture, Child Death, Death Rituals, Galra Week 2017, Gen, Genocide, Mentions of Slavery, Secret Organizations, The Blade of Marmora - Freeform, Worldbuilding, headcanon heavy, lore heavy
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-03-12
Updated: 2017-03-19
Packaged: 2018-10-03 07:28:27
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 4
Words: 1,511
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/10239005
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/arka_r/pseuds/Kolivans
Summary: The Blade of Marmora history could be traced back to ten millennia ago, when the Galra Empire just only began their conquest.--My entries forGalra Week 2017.The Blade of Marmora-centric, Kolivan-centric, minor Thace/Ulaz.





	1. Day 1 - Divide / Conquer

Attempting to take down an empire that had been standing for ten millennia was a long grueling process with seemingly no end in sight, but the Blade of Marmora had to be patient. It wouldn’t do to repeat the mistakes of their predecessors one millennium ago.

 

One millennia ago, their organization was nearly wiped out, leaving only approximately ten percents of their members surviving. They had to lay low a few centuries as they gathered up of what was left from the attack--guarding the information about cultures long destroyed, repopulating the near-extinct beings whose planets were already wiped out a long time ago, hiding in the shadows, waiting.

 

Struggling to survive.

 

They still lurked in every crevices of the Empire. From the military to the entertainment industry, the Blade of Marmora had agents everywhere. True Galrans went into the military ranks, scrounging up information about logistics to be passed to the freedom fighters. Half-Galrans who ‘passed’ as True Galrans lived in the middle of the society, trying to spread sympathy for the non-Galras and distrust to the Empire. The freedom fighters consisted purely on non-Galrans, working in discreet to free prisoners and slaves.

 

The change began slowly but surely. It started with the Galras allowing the non-Galrans to live amongst them and work together with them. The non-Galrans were allowed more freedom, as long as they didn’t mean harm to the Empire. They were still treated as secondary class, but it was a small step to the right direction.

 

Slowly but surely, the cracks began to appear within the Empire. More and more Galras began to try and defend the non-Galran’s rights. Those were the minority, so the Blade approached them, carefully. Some of them eagerly joined the Blade of Marmora, jumping at the chances to fight for what was right. Meanwhile, the others… well, let’s say that they never remembered about what happened and continued on with their lives.

 

Slowly but surely, their members began to increase. Their numbers were still small and the risks of casualty had to be minimized. Their headquarters and hideouts had to constantly be moved from time to time. The last thing they wanted was the Empire eradicating them once and for all.

  
And now, with the resurgence of Voltron, they were ready to strike back.


	2. Day 2: Love / War

Kolivan caught a pair of Galras walking hand in hand to the mess hall. They immediately let go of each other's hand when they saw him and performed a salute--the one on the left lowered his head in embarrassment. It took Kolivan a moment to recognize both of them.

 

The one on the left was Thace and the other was Ulaz--two young Galras who joined the Blade almost at the same time. They were so _young_ , Kolivan lamented. The recruits got younger each _dralsa_ and it pained him to see such young people fighting in a war of old. Young people were supposed to enjoy their life, go out and explore the universe, experience love…

 

Ah… well, it wasn't like the Blade had strict fraternization rule and Kolivan himself wouldn't discourage a young love blooming in the time of war. Call him romantic, but he believed that love was as great of a force as grudge, if not greater.

 

Besides, you would be less likely to betray the Blade if you had a loved one inside, wouldn't you?

 

“At ease, Agents", Kolivan ordered and the young agents put their hands away. Thace’s ears were so expressive, swiveling back and forth in anxiety. Ulaz was no different--his whole body language basically screamed guilt. It wouldn't do if they were to be assigned as spies. Kolivan made a mental note to train it out of the agents later.

 

“Meet me in my office after you're done with your meals”, Kolivan told them. Then, as their posture stiffened, he added, “Don't worry, you didn't do anything wrong. Enjoy your lunch, Agents.”

  
With that, he sauntered away, leaving the two very confused couple whispering furiously to each other in his wake. He smirked to himself.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> note: i made up my own time measurement unit, since it's unlikely that the galras are still using the same measurement for 10,000 years
> 
> dralsa = approx. a year
> 
> i wanted to continue this more but... i sorta got distracted with my other fic sdkjhg


	3. Day 3 - Knowledge / Death

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Day 3 - ~~Knowledge~~ / Death

The Blade of Marmora had a tradition that went on since before the Ten Millennia War, before the Empire forced the ancient Galran tribes to abandon their ways and culture for the sake of conquest and modernism. The Old Traditions had no place in the New Empire.

 

One of those traditions was to honor the dead, which was held on the four hundred-seventieth  _ dral _ of the Galran calendar, called  _ Dral’S’kala _ .

 

The Day of Longing.

 

The Blade of Marmora headquarters mostly served as military base, though there were civilians lived there too. Because of that, the  _ Dral’S’kala  _ was always celebrated minimalistically. Most of the ritual would take place in the Mourning Room. Kolivan would always lead the whole procession; if he was otherwise unable to attend, his Number Two would take over the responsibility.

 

Before the Dral’S’kala, every single ready-hands in the base would clean the Mourning Room. Once it was done, they would decorate the Mourning Room with flowers. Since flowers couldn’t grow in the base, they were replaced with artificial flowers made from various materials--wires, metallic plates, screws, fabrics.

 

The procession began in the morning where they would head to the Mourning Room. Kolivan would recite the heroic deeds and life stories of every single of their fallen agents and fighters. A lot of them he knew by heart; what made them laugh, what made them sad, what made them to be loved by others, every single quirks of their personalities. If he didn’t know them personally, he would read the words written by their friends or families.

 

If a friend or family member of the deceased was present, they would come forward and put a flower to the plate which bore the deceased’s name. If there weren’t any, a youngling would volunteer to put the flower. The Old Traditions believed that a youngling’s soul was still connected to the Mother Universe. It was the reason why killing a youngling would mean hurting the Mother Universe immensely and would be considered as a great crime.

 

Traditionally, this ritual was done in a proper burial ground, but the Blade of Marmora couldn’t always retrieve the bodies of their deceased agents and fighters. Those who were lucky enough to die in space fights would be lost forever in the Void, their quintessence would return to the Mother Universe and their body to be made into Star-Stuff. Those who were unlucky would have their bodies turned into sick experiments by the Druids.

 

This ritual would last until the night-cycle. They had lost so many to the Empire. Like a bloodthirsty beast, the Empire did not discriminate between mothers and fathers and guardians, younglings and elderlies, warriors and civilians, Galrans and non-Galrans. 

  
The Blade of Marmora would always remember everyone they lost; they made sure of that.


	4. Day 5 - Ends / Beginnings

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Day 5 - ~~Ends~~ / Beginnings

The Blade of Marmora history could be traced back to ten millennia ago, when the Galra Empire began their conquest. It started as a small tribe refusing to abandon their heritage and assimilate into the Empire under Zarkon’s tyrannical reign. Zarkon was merciless and the seed of the rebellion nearly met the same fate to the Altea and the old Voltron Alliance.

 

So what was left of them hid and worked from the shadows.

 

It started as a series of small but organized attacks to the Empire’s bases. It meant nothing in the grand scheme of things; but slowly, they began to gain allies from those whose planets were conquered or eradicated by the Empire. Grudge was an uniting force and it was amazing to see how many of them gathered under the same grudge to Zarkon and his Empire.

 

They found what was left of Altea, their gene and culture still lived in the veins of some Galra. In Galran society, they were treated as the second-class, a disposable resource being put at the frontline and forced to fight for the Emperor who destroyed their ancestors’ land. Those were whose grudge was deeper.

 

They found what was left of Axocarium Empire, once so mighty but stood no chance before the Empire forces. They crumbled like dust, but what was left of their infamous Maestro rose from its ashes. The Axocarian lived long and their grudge also ran deep.

 

They found the last few of the Draconians, the sacred beings of ancient time. The Empire slaughtered them like livestocks and harvested their parts. Thankfully, their royal line still lived and they too swore that they wouldn’t stop until the Empire was ashes in the vastness of space.

 

They found what was left of the Veloxians, the Anurans, the Ursii, the Plah’tx, and the Kaleshkars. They were neither mighty or sacred; they were small and terrified of the Empire, but their determination burned as bright as a black hole.

 

The Blade of Marmora grew bigger. Their Galran agents were infiltrating every aspects of the Empire, trying to make it crumble from the inside, while the others were attacking from the outside as freedom fighters.

 

This was how it all started.

**Author's Note:**

> as usual, please direct your prompts and yells to [my tumblr](http://hello-my-stars.tumblr.com).


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